NHTI’s Stage Lynx to perform ‘Anne Frank’

NHTI’s Stage Lynx Productions will put on three performances of The Diary of Anne Frank this weekend in Sweeney Auditorium. Here, some of the cast goes through their lines last week.

There are many factors that go into choosing a show for NHTI’s Stage Lynx Productions.

The powers that be sit down with a collection of scripts (this time the number was eight for the spring show), read them over and start to figure out what will be the best fit. They look for a certain number of character roles needed to put the play on, and then go through the known list of actors available in the club and the school’s acting courses.

And since NHTI is an institution of higher learning, a play with educational value sure makes a lot of sense, too.

So after some careful consideration, The Diary of Anne Frank was chosen for the spring performance – and it certainly seems to be a good fit. The original screenplay was written in 1955 by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett, but this particular one is the updated version by Wendy Kesselman.

“It seems to have a more updated feel to it, more modern,” said Jewel Davis, professor of English, communication and theatre at NHTI and producer of the show.

For those of you who are not familiar with the story, Frank was a young Jewish girl living in the Netherlands during the German occupation of the country. While in hiding, Frank kept a diary about her life before being captured and sent to a concentration camp, where she died of disease.

Following the war, her father, Otto, was given Frank’s diary and put forth the effort to have it published. It has since been released in more than 60 languages.

It’s a heavy topic, but one Davis felt was appropriate.

“I think there is a lot going on right now with the issue of immigration and is a reason why we chose it,” Davis said.

The Stage Lynx production will include a cast of 12, featuring Ashley Bliss as Frank, and Scott Perry (Otto) and Mikaela Szekely (Edith) as her parents – along with many students working behind the scenes.

“We generally do a show that has between eight and 12 people in it to give an opportunity to as many people as we can,” Davis said.

As one of the oldest clubs on the college campus, Stage Lynx is open to the entire NHTI community.

“Anybody who is a student at NHTI or a staff member can audition,” Davis said. “And now that we have Acting 1 and Acting 2 (classes), they are required to audition.”

The performances take place on Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. in Sweeney Auditorium. Tickets are $12 and may be purchased at the door.

“You’ll see a group of young actors who have been seriously training for this show,” Davis said.